Aryna Sabalenka is usually the one setting the tone with her power on the Grand Slam stage, but today brought a very different test. The top seed at Wimbledon had to absorb a barrage of explosive shots from former Grand Slam winner Jelena Ostapenko in a third-round showdown. The Belarusian came through it in the end and then dismantled the Latvian to reach the next round, setting another battle against Naomi Osaka.

“Another aggressive player. Another very powerful match. I’m ready to fight and do whatever it takes to get through,” Sabalenka said in her post-match interview.

The current world No. 1 has now reached the second week at SW19 once again, and she did it without letting Ostapenko take control for too long. 

That victory on Centre Court now sets up one of the biggest matches of this year’s SW19 against Naomi Osaka. The Japanese ace reached the All-England Club fourth round for the first time in her career after beating the Aussie Daria Kasatkina 6-1, 6-3. 

The meeting between Osaka and Sabalenka will also serve as a rematch of their memorable French Open clash earlier this season, setting the stage for another huge battle between two of the WTA Tour’s biggest hitters.

The Belarusian and Japanese ace first faced each other at the US Open 8 years ago in 2018. That tournament turned into a special one for the Japanese ace, as she went on to win it.

After that, they did not meet again for several years, with their rivalry only picking back up at the Indian Wells Open this year.

SW19 will mark their fourth overall meeting in just as many months. All 4 of those previous clashes have come in the Round of 16, with the current top seed already beating Osaka at Indian Wells, Madrid Open, and the French Open this season.

Before 2026, grass would probably have been seen as the surface least likely to help the former world No. 1 pull off an upset. But that is no longer the case, because the Japanese world No. 14 has looked in excellent form on grass this time.

Osaka reached the first grass-court final of her career in Germany just before SW19. She has also not dropped a single set so far at this year’s grass-court Slam, which only underlines how comfortable she has looked.

Now both players are set to battle it out again tomorrow, with another high-stakes meeting waiting at the All-England Club. And for the Belarusian, today’s battle with Ostapenko should also give her added confidence going into another huge test against a former world No. 1.

Aryna Sabalenka shares her thoughts after beating Jelena Ostapenko

The former world No. 5 came into the match against Sabalenka with a strong record on grass. She had reached the SW19 semi-finals eight years ago and had also won two titles on the surface.

But today, the top seed was just a little better when it mattered most. The biggest difference between the two power hitters came on the serve. The Belarusian fired down 9 aces, while the 2017 French Open winner struggled more to keep things tidy off the ground.

In addition, Ostapenko finished with 18 unforced errors, which was 3 times more than Sabalenka’s total in the match.

After the match, Sabalenka was asked what it felt like to face someone who could match her power. “That’s really scary. It can go either way, so I’m happy that today was my day,” she added in her post-match interview. “She’s really dangerous. I’m really happy I was able to get this win, especially in straight sets,” Sabalenka added.

And now, with the battle between two four-time Grand Slam winners coming up next, who are you backing this time?